Anyone uncertain about this year’s elections amid the redistricting debate might turn to local government for some measure of reassurance.

Election judges are saying that they don’t anticipate the boundary-line controversy will affect local contests that are set for a May 12 date and are reporting a few flashes of activity on the filing front.

As of Monday, a slew of incumbents and one former city councilwoman had filed for seats on the Lakeway and Bee Cave city council, Lake Travis school board and Lakeway Municipal Utility District board.

The filing period began Feb. 6 and will end March 5, which is also the deadline for write-in candidates.

Retirees Dee Ann Burns-Farrell, 68, and Dave Taylor, 71, filed for re-election to Lakeway City Council.

Incumbent councilman and mayor pro tem Bruce Harris’ term also expires in May. All three ran unopposed in 2010.

Lakeway council members serve at large, and the top three majority vote winners are elected to positions on the council.

Lakeway city secretary Donna Boyle touted local offices’ ability to affect change in a more direct fashion.

“They [council members] are the ones who make the decisions which have the most immediate impact on people’s daily lives,” Boyle said.

To qualify for a place on the Lakeway election ballot, a candidate must be a citizen of the U.S. and meet all the requirements of the state and federal election laws as well as the city charter.

A prospective candidate must be 21 years of age or older by the date of the election, be a registered voter residing in Lakeway, or annexed area, for at least one year prior to the election, may not hold any other compensated public office if elected, may not be a city employee, contractor, or supplier, may not be in financial arrears to the city for any reason and file an affidavit and statement of representation in compliance with the city’s code of ethics.

For information on Lakeway’s elections, contact Boyle at 314-7506 or donnaboyle@lakeway-tx.gov.

Bee Cave voters will choose their next mayor and two City Council members in May should the races be contested – an uncommon occurrence in the city in the last few years.

Mayor Caroline Murphy, 61, a health-care ethics and compliance officer at St. David’s HealthCare, has filed for re-election to her seventh consecutive term in office, as incumbent councilmen Mike Murphy and Chad Bockius’ terms are set to expire on their at-large positions.

Former Bee Cave councilwoman Zelda Auslander, a retiree, has her sights set on returning to the council after spending almost two years in Asia and a year and a half back in the city.

Qualified candidates must be U.S. citizens, 18 or older on the first day of the term, resided continuously in the state for at least a year and Bee Cave for at least six months, have not been determined by a final judgment of a court exercising probate jurisdiction to be totally mentally incapacitated or partially mentally incapacitated without the right to vote and not convicted of a felony.

Bee Cave council applications are available at Bee Cave City Hall, 4000 Galleria Parkway, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday from city secretary Kaylynn Holloway. For information, contact Holloway at 767-6641 or kholloway@beecavetexas.gov.

Financial adviser Guy Clayton, 40, and marketing consultant Lisa Johnson, 47, are hoping to retain their Place 1 and 2 seats, respectively, on Lake Travis school district’s board of trustees.

Lakeway Municipal Utility District board incumbents Kay Andrews and Allan Hitchcock have both filed for re-election. Andrews is a college professor, and Hitchcock lists his professional experience as sales, medical research, regulatory affairs and project management.

Andrews and Hitchcock have both served on the board since 2004.

For LMUD election information, contact Margaret Cathey at 261-6222.

The Village of the Hills will elect three aldermen to fill expiring terms.

Incumbent Hilda Potsavich has submitted her application, and alderman Ron Dodd indicated he was set to file Wednesday. Village secretary Chris Redd said that incumbent alderwoman Bruce Warmuth announced Tuesday that she would not seek re-election.

The three candidates earning the most votes will be elected to office for two-year terms.

Candidate applications are available at the Village of The Hills office at 102 Trophy Drive.

The last day to register to vote in local elections is April 12, and early voting runs from April 30 to May 8.